David Buchwald's background in science, economics, tax law, and government has prepared him to take on the extraordinary challenges facing the Lower Hudson Valley. As an Assemblyman, he has passed more progressive legislation than anyone else in this race. As a Congressman, he'll hit the ground running on day one and fight for practical, progressive solutions to the problems we face.

In 2012, David launched a campaign to do one of the hardest things in politics: defeat a well-funded incumbent politician. He built a grassroots campaign focused on listening to voters and standing up for progressive values. Despite the odds, David defeated the Republican and flipped the State Assembly seat from red to blue.

Arriving in Albany as a newly elected State Assemblyman, David got to work right away. He introduced landmark legislation to strip corrupt public officials of their taxpayer-funded pensions. The established power brokers tried to stop the bill, but David didn’t back down. He built a coalition that demanded a change to the old rules of Albany. His hard work finally paid off in 2017, when New York State voters overwhelmingly approved his pension forfeiture amendment to the New York State Constitution.

While President Donald Trump repeatedly ignored Americans’ calls to see his tax returns, David, formerly a practicing tax attorney, rolled up his sleeves and got to work. He spearheaded the New York TRUST Act, which now enables the U.S. Congress to request New York State tax records for top government officials, including the President of the United States. Trump is now suing to block the law and keep his tax records secret.

After three successful re-elections and seven years in the State Assembly, David has sponsored and passed 70 bills into law and worked on a host of vital issues impacting New Yorkers: combating corruption, protecting our environment, tackling the gun violence epidemic, defending a woman’s right to choose, and restoring the SALT deduction.

David has always fought for his constituents and the Lower Hudson Valley. Sometimes that’s meant working on problems impacting the whole region, such as when he coordinated a response group to the ConEd & NYSEG March 2018 power outages or rallied with his State Assembly colleagues to protect the future of Westchester Medical Center. Sometimes that’s meant helping one person at a time, like when his office convinced New York City’s pension system that a 100-year-old constituent was still alive and that her pension checks shouldn’t have been cut off.

A White Plains resident for 19 years, David served on the White Plains Common Council before joining the State Assembly. On the Council, he advocated on critical challenges facing the community, from cleaning up the environment to strengthening government ethics. He was also a member and then Chairman of the Metro-North Railroad Commuter Council.

David grew up in Westchester County and is a proud graduate of its public schools. He later earned his B.S. in physics from Yale University, along with a J.D. from Harvard Law School and a Masters in Public Policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government. Professionally, he has worked as an economics researcher on antitrust issues and a tax attorney in New York.

David married his wife, Lara, in 2014. They have two children.